Soul Bound

1        Soul Bound
1.3      Making a Splash
1.3.3    An Unrequited Love
1.3.3.28 Assent

Luckily they'd already covered most of the distance. Alderney drew her into a side street where Bungo lifted a heavy iron grating, and soon Kafana found herself standing in a small dry sewer passage lined with brick. Alderney was sweating a little, but she led the way, stopping at each junction to hold her lantern at the right angle to reveal the shadows of a pattern of marks scratched on the ceiling.

Kafana wondered why Dio's question had bothered her so much. Was it just because the others were asking her to choose between pretending to be someone she wasn't, or risking the launch of House Sincero and everything else they'd planned to do with the fortune confiscated from The Immortals? Or was it something deeper? Something connected with the fear of losing herself that had prompted her decision to stop hiding behind masks?

She arrived at the venue before she arrived at a conclusion. Tomsk, who'd taken on setting up the safety arrangements for the meeting, waved them past a check point and into a long rectangular cellar. The low arched ceiling was obscured by pungent pine-smoke from a fireplace halfway down, but she could see stairs leading up to Association Hall at one end, and a wide stone cavern at the other where a temporary raised stage had been constructed using wine casks and trestle tables.

They split up. Bungo stayed to help Tomsk. Alderney wove through the crowd towards a board next to the stairs, where Wellington was using chalk to write an agenda and rules for the meeting, a look of relief on her face. And Kafana reluctantly headed towards the stage, her hair and face still concealed by the hood of robes she wasn't entitled to.

As she approached she noticed Bulgaria next to the stage, listening to a tall dark-skinned figure with a familiar air of authority - the captain of the Unity Krewe, who Harlequin had introduced her to that morning.

Madero: "The stuff I do as Speaker of the Carnivale Congress isn't that different from the work I used to do at Bolfreds."

Bulgaria: "Bolfreds?"

Madero: "We were partners in a transportation venture. Boldred, Mihai and Madero. Mihai was a giant of a man; patient, gentle and far smarter than most people guessed. He had a gift for dealing with horses, like many of his mother's folk, but he also trained everyone who worked for us and picked the load and route for every trip that would suit the ability of its driver and their team. Bolfred was one of those people who thought with their hands and didn't speak much. But every wheel or vehicle design he touched became a thing of beauty. I learned so much from him. And from his wife, who could squeeze blood from a stone when it came to tightly written contracts."

Kafana joined them. Madero kept impressing her; perhaps because he obviously felt no need to. He had a lovely soft smile on his face as he remembered his old friends.

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Kafana: "But what did you do, Captain?"

Madero: "Kafana, wasn't it? I didn't recognise you! Well, basically I talked to people; tried to help them."

She nodded encouragingly, and he continued.

Madero: "I started as an apprentice woodworker under Master Bolfred. We were both working at, well, it wasn't the most pleasant of places. Through no fault of his own, Bolfred's left hand was maimed and the company fired him without a thought and offered me his position. They were really quite surprised when I declined."

He chuckled before continuing: "They were even more surprised when I introduced him to Tiera and she fell in love with him."

Bulgaria's nose twitched, and he joined in: "Is that all she did?"

Madero: "Well, no. I'd heard rumours that she belonged to a cadet branch of the Pentapolis Obertenghis and had recently arrived to set up their Torello branch office. I swung us an invitation to a party she would be present at, then persuaded her that paying for a high priest to fix Bolfred's hand in return for retaining us on advantageous terms was the solution that would best meet the Obertenghis transportation needs. I ended up being a mix of trouble shooter and salesman, though I never lost my love for woodworking."

Kafana: {So Madero is well respected, used to dealing with nobles, and knows quite a few merchants in the Ghetto?}

Alderney: {"Quite a few"? Every Carnivale fan in Torello knows him, and that's practically everyone. We couldn't have got half as many people here this fast, if he hadn't thrown his contacts and reputation behind the Levellers. You should absolutely make him one of your deputy leaders, or whatever you decide to call them."}

Bulgaria: {"Madero may be used to dealing with nobles, but you've shown you have the ability to make them back down. Too late to discuss that now though - it's show time"}

And then, as if summoned by Bulgaria's signal, the faint chime of the bells sounded.

*ding* *dang*

It was already an hour past sunset? She was so late logging out, her regulars from the village were going to complain about not getting their lunch on time. How quickly could she get this over with? Bulgaria helped her up onto the stage and she looked out at the expectant faces in the audience - hard working people who run the risk of coming here because they trusted her, and were now waiting for her to speak.

She stood there, head bowed, hair hidden. She had a high charisma stat. It would be easy. All she needed to do was make a few vague promises, throw in some platitudes about workers standing united, and leave manipulation of the game's reputation mechanic to Bulgaria's cunning and Wellington's preparations.

There was just one problem.

She couldn't do it. Her mouth wouldn't open.

Jebiga!

She made a decision; it felt like her whole body had been twisted like the sinews of a ballista and had now been released.

Kafana: {Sys, deactivate my skills and auras. Display only the title we earned by freeing Basso from the Red Death plague. Mute chat.}

System: [Done. Title "Saviour" activated.]

Her steps were light as she moved to the very edge, standing alone in front of them; then she reached up to grip the hood and, in one dramatic motion, tore it off, shaking free her torrent of waist length ocean-blue hair. The foundry workers recognised her immediately and gave a cheer. Those who hadn't been at the stand-off joined in and soon they were stomping and hollering so hard, she could feel the stage vibrating underneath her feet.

Was there a chance that people in the building above might hear? She certainly wouldn't be heard over this, so she might as well make use of the delay. Kafana drew on her sonic magic, trying to combine the public address amplified she'd learned from Flavio with the sound damping technique she'd picked up from her Stealth Performance skill, visualising everyone in the room being able to hear each other clearly, and only people in the room. Then she held up her hand for silence, and started speaking herself.